THE NEW FELLOW
“Something’s up,” remarked Tom in a whisper.
“Sure,” assented Phil. “But who is it?”
“I’ll take a look,” volunteered Sid, and, with a quick motion he turned
out the electric light, somewhat of an innovation in Randall. Then he
tiptoed to the door, which he opened on a crack. Through the aperture
came the noise of retreating footsteps, and it was evident to the
strained ears of the four chums that someone was going down the hall,
toward the broad stairway that led out on the campus, while someone else
was proceeding toward the main part of the dormitory, where Proctor Zane
had a sort of auxiliary office.
“Who is it--can you see?” demanded Tom Parsons, in a hoarse whisper.
“No! Keep still, can’t you? Wait until he gets under the hall light,”
was the reply from Sid.
“One of ’em was Franklin, the monitor for this floor; I’m sure of that,”
declared Phil. “I know his voice.”
“And the other----” began Tom.
“It’s that new fellow,” interrupted Sid as he, just then, caught a
glimpse of the youth who had caused the disturbance. “He came in
yesterday, don’t you remember. He’s in the soph. science division.
Gabbler--Rabbler or some such name as that.”
“I know!” exclaimed Tom. “It’s Shambler--Jake Shambler. He introduced
himself to me after first lecture. Rather fresh, I thought him, even if
he did make the soph. class. What’s he doing?”
“Going out, as near as I can tell,” replied Sid. “He must have had a
scuffle with Franklin. Well, it’s none of our funeral. Let’s turn in.
I’m dead tired.”
“What sort of a chap is he?” asked Frank, in rather idle curiosity, as
with the light once more switched on, the four boys proceeded to get
ready for bed.
“Not our sort at all,” replied Tom. “Decent enough appearing, and all
that, but the kind that thinks he knows it all. That was a fair sample,
the way he talked to the monitor just now.”
“Serve him right if he got caught,” murmured Phil.
“Oh, he’ll get it all right,” declared Sid. “Pop Zane isn’t as easy as
he was when we first came here. He’s right up to the mark, and if this
Shambler thinks he can shuffle off the campus, and come back when it
pleases his own sweet will, he’ll have another guess coming. What did he
say to you, Tom?”
“Nothing much.”
“It must have been something.”
“Well, I was in a hurry, and I didn’t pay much attention. He wanted to
know something about athletics, whether we’d have a ball team or not. I
said we probably would, and then he wanted to know what show there was
for track athletics. I didn’t know, so I couldn’t tell him. Then I
thought he was getting too friendly on short notice, so I shook him.”
“Nice way for one of Randall’s old stand-bys to treat a stranger, in a
strange land,” commented Phil.
“Oh, he won’t be a stranger long,” declared Tom. “He has brass enough to
carry him anywhere. He’ll get along. I don’t believe we want him in our
crowd, anyhow.”
“All right,” assented the others and then, as the last bell, for “lights
out” resounded through the dormitory, they leaped into bed.
If Jake Shambler, or any others who tried to “run the guard” that night
were caught, it did not come to the notice of our friends. They awoke
betimes the next morning, and, as usual hastened to chapel, making the
last of their simple toilets on the way, for, somehow, neck scarfs
never did seem to lend themselves to quick tying, in the early hours of
dawn.
“Well, I hear you lads had a grand time last night,” remarked Holly
Cross to the “inseparables,” as they paused on the chapel steps. “Saved
fair maidens in distress, and all that sort of thing.”
“Oh, we were on the job with the bob,” laughed Tom. “Where were you?”
“Doing the virtuous--boning Latin.”
“Like Cæsar!” exploded Sid.
“No, Cicero,” said Holly gravely. “Vandal, to doubt the word of your
betters!”
“Oh cheese it, Holly. You----” began Phil, but the warning bell ushered
them into the sacred precincts of the chapel, over the exercises of
which Dr. Churchill presided with his usual solemnity.
“There’s Shambler,” spoke Tom in a low voice to Sid, as the four filed
out, soon to separate in order to attend different classes.
“Who, that big chap with the red cap?”
“That’s the fellow!”
“Looks as though he had plenty of bone and muscle,” commented Frank.
“He’s coming over here,” went on Tom. “We’ll have to be decent to him, I
s’pose.”
Shambler approached. There was a certain breezy air about him, a
good-natured manner, and a seeming feeling of confidence, that, while
it might be all right, once you had made friends with him, yet was
rather antagonizing at first appearance. It was as if the new student
took too much for granted, and this is never overlooked among college
lads.
Shambler nodded to Tom, in what he meant to be a friendly fashion, and
began to keep step with him. Then he spoke.
“I say, I didn’t know it was the fashion at Randall for everybody to go
to bed with the chickens.”
“It isn’t,” said Tom shortly.
“It seems so,” was the rejoinder. “I was out for a lark last night, and
I couldn’t find anyone from around here to have fun with. I went past
your room and it was as dark as a pocket--you’re on my corridor; aren’t
you--sixty-eight?”
Tom nodded.
“Well, you certainly were sporting your oak. Did you hear the run-in I
had with a monitor? Beastly fresh. I made out all right, fooled the
proc. good and proper. I wish you had been along. Are these your
friends?”
Shambler included Sid, Phil and Frank, in a comprehensive wave of his
hand, and there was no choice but for Tom to introduce them, which he
did with the best grace possible.
“Glad to meet you!” exclaimed Shambler, holding out a muscular hand. “I
hear you’re in the athletic set. That’s where I want to get, too, though
I’m fond of a good time, and not too much training. I had bully fun last
night. Met some fellows from Boxer Hall, and we stayed in town quite
late. Don’t you ever hit it up?”
“Not very often,” replied Sid, a bit coldly. “Well,” he added, “I’m
going to leave you fellows. I’ve got a lecture on.”
“So have I,” added Tom, and, not to his very great pleasure, Shambler
linked his arm in that of the pitcher’s, and walked off with him,
remarking:
“I’m due for the same thing, old man. Do you mind if I sit with you? I’d
be glad if you’d give me a few pointers. They do things a bit differently
at the lectures here than at Harkness, where I came from. The old man’s
business changed, and I had to come here. How about cutting lectures?”
“It can be done,” spoke Tom coldly, for it was not his habit to indulge
in this practice. There were a few other commonplace remarks, and then
the college day fairly began.
Not until that afternoon did Tom meet his three chums again, and then,
in coming from the last lecture of the day, he heard footsteps behind
him, and turned to see Shambler hurrying to catch up to him.
“I say!” began the new student. “I meant to tell you. I met some fine
chaps last night from Boxer Hall. They’re coming over this afternoon to
call for me. I was wondering whether you and your chums wouldn’t like to
come out with us. We’re going to hire a drag and take a ride.”
“I don’t know,” began Tom. He appreciated the spirit in which Shambler
gave the invitation, and yet he did not altogether like the fellow.
Besides, he did not want to break up the pleasant relations so long
existing among the inseparables, and he knew that spirit would vanish if
a fifth member was introduced.
Still he did not quite see how he could “shake” Shambler. Ahead of him
Tom saw Sid, Phil and Frank waiting for him, and on their faces he
detected a look of annoyance, as they beheld his companion. But the
problem was solved for him.
“By Jove! There are the Boxer Hall boys now!” cried Shambler, waving his
hands to some youths who were discernable on the far side of the big
campus. “Come on over, and we’ll have some fun.”
Tom took one look at the two newcomers. In an instant he recognized them
as the enemies of himself and his chums--Fred Langridge and his crony,
Garvey Gerhart.
“I--I’m afraid you’ll have to excuse me,” murmured Tom.
“Why--what’s wrong?” asked Shambler, curiously.
“Well, the fact of the matter is that your new friends would hardly
thank you for bringing us together,” answered Tom simply, as he swung
off and joined his chums, leaving a rather mystified student standing
staring after him.